Battle Royale SeriesReview

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This series will assault you and leave you for dead.

By A.E. Sparrow

Looking back, ninth grade was a real turning point for me, as I'm sure it was for many people reading this, or will be for those not quite there yet. It was the peak of my adolescence. I was firm in my belief that women were no longer the enemy, and in fact became convinced that I'd never be able to talk to some of them&#Array;okay, most of them&#Array;without sounding like a complete idiot. I had friends I honestly believed I'd take a bullet for as well as enemies I'd shoot between the eyes without hesitation. It was the most awkward time of my life, but also a time I look back on quite a bit, now that it's a good amount of years behind me.

So it's no surprise Battle Royale struck a chord with me, as I'm sure it will with you.

Imagine a society that randomly selects a ninth-grade class - 21 boys and 21 girls - puts them in a secured area and has them participate in "The Program". The rules are simple: The students are each given a weapon (ranging from an Uzi to a boomerang), a map and some supplies. They have three days to kill each other, with only one student surviving. If, at the end of three days, more than one student is still alive, the explosive collars around each student's neck will detonate, killing everyone. Sure, it sounds barbaric, but ask yourself how far we've come with our addiction to reality television, and how much further we'd be willing to push it. It's not so far-fetched to imagine Ma and Pa Suburbia tuning in to a show where death would be one of the possible outcomes.

Now imagine yourself, and the people you knew in ninth grade, and ask yourself: Were there friends you'd truly have taken a bullet for? Were there enemies you'd kill without a second thought? How far would you take it, or would you have participated at all? How far do you think your so-called friends would have gone, and would they have taken aim at you? There are forty-two individual stories contained in the fifteen volumes of Battle Royale, and don't be surprised if you find one that might hit a little close to home.

If you've been collecting manga for any decent length of time, the chances are strong that you've already been exposed to this story in some format. It began as a novel that some hail as one of the most controversial of the past decade or two. The novel spawned a movie and a sequel, and of course a manga version. So why, with the movie available at your local import shop, should you invest in the multi-volume manga? Simply put, you can't put fifteen volumes of character development into a two-hour movie, and that's ultimately what drives this story.

Don't get me wrong. The movie is highly recommended viewing if you can get your hands on it. Still, you're getting about a thirteenth of the story, because the film can only devote time to developing a handful of the students, sacrificing about 39 stories that you're going to find in the manga. You're going to miss out on Toshinori Oda - a male student who believes he's destined to win the game simply because he's of a higher station than the other students. You'll miss Mizuho Inada, a female who believes the spirits of the earth will save her from the hail of bullets surrounding her. And you'll definitely miss the famous lighthouse scene. Oh, it's in the film, but I think you'll find the manga version just a bit more intense. Tokyopop brought in Keith Giffen, the busiest man in comics, to aid with the translation, and it shows. The book reads so smoothly you're going to be done with each volume long before you're ready for it to be over.

Okay, so hopefully you're sold on the manga's advantages over the film, but why not pick up the novelization, then? Hopefully flipping through the pages of even one volume will answer your question. Taguchi's artwork will assault you and put you through the wringer several times in each volume. You may think you've seen high contrast illustrations used to their fullest extent, but come back after you've read this series and talk to me again. His work on this series has raised the bar for what I expect from certain types of manga, and I'm willing to put down even money you'll feel the same way. You've read some gory stories before, but you've got to go a long way before you're going to match some of the scenes Taguchi lays out in these panels. It all depends on how well you can stomach seeing a person's head split open or blown apart, in the most graphic and gory manner possible. If you can't get through the first volume, it's not likely you'll make it through the rest of the series.

Which brings up an important point: Most retailers will have this book wrapped in plastic, and with good reason. This book takes ultra-violence to a new level. Oh, sure, you've seen Tarantino movies. We all saw Marvin's head get blown all over the back of the car window in Pulp Fiction. That's kid stuff compared to what you'll find in this book. Violence for the sake of violence or shock value is one thing, but in this book, some of the violence is premeditated. Simply put, it is murder. Sure, a lot of kids choose not to participate in the game, and you can predict what will happen to them, but several of them are more than willing participants, and you will squirm in your seat as you watch them do away with kids they were sitting next to in algebra class the day before. In addition, you're going to see a ton of upskirt and fan-service shots, including some extreme nudity and sexual content, particularly in the character of Mitsuko Souma, for whom sex is a weapon. I'm no prude, but parents, if your kid brings home a copy of this book, it's time to do your duty and make sure they know what they're reading. It's rated M for mature, and few books need this warning more than this one.

Trying to explain Battle Royale to someone requires a good ability to phrase your description properly. On the most superficial level, it's a bunch of ninth-graders stuck on an island trying to kill each other, and for a lot of readers, that'll be enough. Dig a little deeper, and it's an examination of how precious life can be, and how the past shapes your behavior in the present. Take it a step further and it's a testament to believing in the best in people as opposed to expecting the worst. It can even be interpreted as a struggle between the older generation and the young. Whatever reason you need, find a reason to pick up this series. It is controversial, it is violent beyond what you might be ready to accept, and it will surely make you flinch uneasily more than once, but you may also come away from it with a different view of the world around you in the process.

Battle Royale is a series that will absolutely assault you and leave you for dead, and you're going to love every minute of it. While you're reading it, imagine yourself in that situation and what you might have done, not at the age you are now, but try to remember how you were as a first-year high school student. What would you have done? Hide and hope for the best? Pick up the weapon and start looking for bodies? Try to form alliances with your friends? The answer was different for each of the students who participated in the series, and the answer will be different for every reader who picks it up.